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Busy morning Sunday, September 23, 2007 We just got home from Annapolis, where I ran in a 5K race, sponsored by a breast and ovarian cancer research/fundraising organization. It is a beautiful morning, and Quiet Waters Park has some neat (although, awfully hilly) trails. I haven't run in any races since waaaay before I got pregnant, so I was pretty nervous. I freaked out that I was going to be the last person to finish about 30 minutes before it started, but Andrew assured me that a) I wouldn't be, and b) it wouldn't matter if I was. He said he thinks I was in the top-10 of women to finish...So sweet (even though he HAS to be lying). Well, I wasn't last. I actually did okay. I finished in 29:17, which is not bad considering I had to a) stop and tie my shoe (at least 15 seconds, because I fumbled a bit), b) walked twice (a solid 30-40 seconds lost), c) had NO clue how much longer I had left because there weren't mile markers (major demotivation), and d) was really thirsty (easy 25 seconds). It was pretty humid in the woods, but the shade was nice. What was not nice was the point when I could smell skunk. Also not nice was the smell of decomposing animal toward the end, but I suppose that's a price you pay when you trek off of the treadmill and into the woods. Here are Benjamin and I before the race:  Here I am, crossing the finish line (photo credit to Andrew):  All in all, it was a great way to spend a Sunday morning. And, if for nothing else, $35 to a great cause. Not to beat a dead horse or anything, but I thought I should share pictures of my big neighborhood offense with everyone. My question is this...why on EARTH would I bother to remove the dumb shrub? Seriously. The Association must not know about my obsession with symmetry.  Here is one of the front of our house, in case you care:  And a random of the bean playing at the playground a couple of days ago:  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday! The boys are napping, so I am going to relax for a bit, too! ~Courtney posted at 11:00:44 AM Ridiculous Things: Part 1 Friday, September 21, 2007 In my spare time, I like to deal with things like this. I seriously laughed for about 45 straight minutes after getting this in the mailbox today. We don't even use the front door, so I never would have noticed. For those who care, we did NOT remove the "plant material." It was missing from it's appropriate spot when we moved in, or has since been stolen from our massive yard .00000000001 acres. ~Courtney posted at 8:23:21 PM Happy Friday Friday, September 21, 2007  ~Courtney posted at 9:54:29 AM FAR too much time... Wednesday, September 19, 2007 I think I need to pick up a new hobby, or volunteer, or something. This is the type of thing I do, instead. ~Courtney posted at 9:01:48 AM Loving autumn Tuesday, September 18, 2007 So, it's not quite autumn, technically, but I've been in absolute heaven with the weather we've been having. We've spent a good bulk of our days outside, usually on the playground. Benjamin's ever-improving walking skills are put to the test on the uneven woodchip and dirt terrain, but he's doing great! I promise to lug the camera out there soon, although it's much more fun to run around with him than to take pictures! ~Courtney posted at 8:38:56 PM Running Sunday, September 16, 2007 I've put 45 miles on the treadmill in the last 2.5 weeks. All running. Go me. ~Courtney posted at 7:05:33 PM Heard on the playground... Friday, September 14, 2007 I was at the playground this morning, and two women kept referring to it as the "tot lot." What is wrong with just plain, old playground? Why must there be dumb terms to describe everything kid-related? Rant over. ~Courtney posted at 9:12:24 AM Woohoo! Thursday, September 13, 2007 8 grapes A few bites of grilled cheese on whole grain 1/2 a turkey dog 1/4 of a banana That was Benjamin's dinner tonight. I kept saying "yay!" every time he'd eat another bite, so he would clap for himself inbetween bites, but eventually we got down a semi-decent dinner. I am psyched! Fingers crossed that he's coming around on the food thing. Or maybe he was just starving because he opted out of eating the plethora of lunch choices I offered... Anyhow. ~Courtney posted at 7:30:31 PM New table! Wednesday, September 12, 2007 My mom and Ron gave Benjamin a table and 2 chairs from Pottery Barn Kids, and he loves it!   ~Courtney posted at 9:09:27 AM Defiant Words Tuesday, September 11, 2007 As I put a very sleepy, and VERY grumpy Benjamin into his crib for his morning nap, he rolled over, stood up, looked me straight in the eye and said "NO NIGHT NIGHT." I almost believed him, but after checking back in about 2 minutes later, he was sound asleep. ~Courtney posted at 8:12:36 PM Relatively Uneventful... Monday, September 10, 2007 Our weekend, that is. For the first time in months, we had VERY little to do this weekend. We were far from un-busy, but it was much more laid-back, and far fewer miles were driven, compared to our recent travel-palooza. Friday night, we went to dinner. Early, of course. Saturday, we (GASP) all slept in until about 8:30 (A & B were up for about 30 minutes around five, but quickly went back to bed), we ran errands and just hung out around the house. At around 4, we headed out to the Maryland Renaissance Festival (yeah, yeah...I know, not my typical scene!!!) to watch our friend compete in the Scottish Games. We were, of course, running late for the 4:30 start, so much to Andrew's disappointment, we didn't get to walk around at all. However, a couple of trips to the beer tent, and he'd gotten over it. Yesterday was another laid back day. More errands, and lots of hanging out around the house. We finally got our grocery shopping all done. I also squeezed in a five mile run during B's afternoon nap. After Benjamin went to bed, I whipped up some super-healthy meatballs and homemade tomato sauce that I found in a baby-food organic cookbook I bought back when I was making his own babyfood purees. That's dinner for him (hopefully) tonight. Stephanie and Jonathan are coming over for a visit later this morning, and that's about all we have on the agenda for today! Oh, we have been total slackers with the camera lately...I promise that we'll take some new photos this week and get them posted for you. ~Courtney posted at 10:32:05 AM 12 Month Stats Friday, September 07, 2007 We just got home from Benjamin's well-baby visit. He went from being a huge-o baby, to a relatively average-sized toddler: Height: 31.25 inches (50%ile) Weight: 23 lbs, 8 ounces (75%ile) He had 3 shots today, including the MMR. He took them like a champ, and seems to be content right now. He's reading a book and eating a waffle. Hopefully he'll stay this happy all day! On a similar note, if you seasoned (or more-so than I am) moms could come in with some toddler-food-aversion-advice, I'd REALLY appreciate it. Benjamin, who used to eat anything I gave him, only eats grilled cheese, (baked)chicken nuggets, applesauce, french fries, ice cream, and occasionally, yogurt. I've seen this book in a couple of magazines this month, but I was only able to pre-order it, since it doesn't come out until October. Any ideas or advice in the meantime would be great! This has been one of those "short" weeks that is really long. TGIF. ~Courtney posted at 11:23:33 AM Will walk for ice cream Tuesday, September 04, 2007 So, his inspiration for crawling was early in his solid food days, and a simple whole-grain English muffin with a bit of butter did the trick to motivate him across the room. For walking, I actually have to get out an ice cream sandwich, sit across the room and cheer him on with chocolate. But, he can now make it all the way across a room without losing his balance at all. He doesn't even need to hold on to his balloon anymore! In case you were worried about me feeding ice cream before noon...we just finished a healthy lunch. ~Courtney posted at 11:59:56 AM Birthday Fun! Sunday, September 02, 2007 We have had such a great time celebrating Benjamin's first birthday. He had his party on Saturday, and we couldn't have wished for better weather. It was low-70s and sunny, so everything was able to be outside. The food was fantastic, Benjamin had a blast being the center of attention for the afternoon (well, he's usually the center of attention, but not of 20-something people!), and he got some great loot, too! The highlight of the entire day was Benjamin figuring out how to walk. I had picked up a bunch of balloons for him while I was out running errands, and after beating them around the kitchen for awhile, he got up, and walked, using them for "balance." It was so cool to have a bunch of people there to witness his first real walking, and he was SO proud of himself. He did some more walking today, although, he still prefers the efficiency of creeping around. We took somewhere between 100-150 pictures, but I haven't had a chance to go through them all. Here is a sneak-peek:    On Friday night, my mom let Andrew and I sneak out of the house after dinner to go to the movies. Benjamin had already gone to bed, and never even woke up while we were gone. In fact, he didn't wake up until 4:30 am, and I was hoping that might be a "one year old thing," but last night proved that is not the case. Andrew, just excited to be going to the movies, didn't argue when I chose The Nanny Diaries. It was really cute, and a fun change of pace. Thanks again, Mom!! We drove home last night, arriving around midnight. There wasn't much traffic, so it was a quick trip, but it was even more boring than normal, because we were in two cars. Benjamin slept 95% of the way, so that was really helpful! I drank a Sugar-Free Red Bull to make it through the last two hours, and was totally wired when I got home. I have had MAYBE 20 caffeine drinks in the last year, so, there you have it. Today, we visited the Smithsonian National Zoo in DC. We had joined a couple of months ago, but today was the first day that the weather was great, we were all home, and nobody was working. We were only there for a couple of hours, but enjoyed seeing elephants, hippos, and mostly, the indoor mammals. Benjamin is a big fan of the crazy little primates! The entrance is actually free, but parking is pretty expensive, which is the main reason we joined. Well, the lots were full by the time we got there, and we ended up parking on a residential street a few blocks away (after driving for about 30 minutes to stumble upon someone else leaving)...hopefully it'll be easier to park when Benjamin and I go on a weekday. What a pain! Tomorrow is likely a recovery day. My birthday thank-yous are written and ready for the mail. Andrew just got home from the grocery store, and I think our plan s to make it a VERY early night. In fact, it's after nine, and already later than I was planning on staying up! ~Courtney posted at 9:07:43 PM Happy (one day late) Birthday Benjamin!!! Saturday, September 01, 2007 Happy Birthdy to our perfect Benjamin! It was a great day, but the party is still yet to come. Updates and pics when we get home tomorrow! ~Courtney posted at 8:15:55 AM |
